


model-scale, dot matrix nightmare

by Elkian (SuperImposed)



Category: Daredevil (Comics), Daredevil (TV)
Genre: Ganke Le and Miles Morales are mentioned but not present so, Gen, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rated mostly for language, comics within comics, i wrote this in like an hour instead of getting read for work do NOT @ me, we have fun here don't worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-04
Updated: 2020-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:54:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27388291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SuperImposed/pseuds/Elkian
Summary: Samuel, like an idiot, had said "Sure, that's fine, go ahead."His fingers shook on the package.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 88





	model-scale, dot matrix nightmare

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [drag and rasp](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26075266) by [deniigiq](https://archiveofourown.org/users/deniigiq/pseuds/deniigiq). 



> A direct (if unofficial obvs) sequel to Deniigiq's marvelous **drag and rasp** , and will probably make more sense if you read that first! (Deniigi's works are also my prime and in fact sole source of Sam Chung-Blindspot knowledge fyi)
> 
> Despite many attempts I have not actually gotten far in reading _Journey to the West_ so the bulk of my Sun Wukong knowledge here is colloquial/common-knowledge stuff.
> 
> *edited the title slightly

"Package for you."

Oh, good, great, he was-

"It's from Miles?"

....fuck.

He accepted it from Foggy, and bolted down to his room.

Inside the padded envelope, surviving despite the ignored "Do Not Bend" thanks to some sturdy cardboard inserts, was... _it_.

There was a note on the front, from Ganke. (Sweet kid - Sam threatened to replace Hannah with him on a semi-weekly basis. Her response was, naturally, "do it, coward"; they were good.)

> _This is the one Miles told you about_
> 
> _\- Ganke_
> 
> _p.s. you really do not have to read it ok we understand_

Ahaha. Ha. Hoo.

Mistakes were made.

Miles had (to Ganke's mounting fury, apparently) been teasing about each installment since the kids had first given him the first edition comic.

(A comic! For him! Sam had literally cried! And then cried laughing because _oh my_ _god_.)

Foggy said it was because he spent too much time with Peter and was picking up on his self-destructive tendencies.

Mayhaps.

But the point was, when Miles texted him -solo- to ask how he felt about-

About-

(Ganke was a good writer. Not only did Peter constantly ask the universe why couldn't _he_ have done the recent Spider-comics, the kid had presented a shockingly elegant and accessible metaphor for triggers.

Blindspot was definitely hitting potholes.)

The point was that Samuel, like an idiot, had said "Sure, that's fine, go ahead."

His fingers shook on the package.

Deep breaths, Blindspot. You can do this.

He tore- no, nope, let's not- he _carefully snipped_ the wrapper off with the wire snips nearest to hand and laid the issue down on his bed.

They hadn't done it on the cover, at least - another guest artist, though he wasn't sure who. The cover was Blindspot and Monkey, with Blindspot trying to yank DD's mask off Monkey's face while Monkey bared his fangs in a snarl.

He can do this.

Page one was the credits, per usual now. Page the _first_ was a continuation of the dogs running off from last issue, with Monkey useless yelling and flailing after them (the laugh caught him off-guard).

He appreciated that they'd even put in a bit of "Blindspot" thinking about how the dogs were running home and would be fine. Little things.

He kept reading.

Monkey was haranguing comics-Blindspot for the umbrella, and comics-Blindspot was equal parts frustrated and baffled.

(He loved how Guotin Wei was written - Matt said it was equal parts his voice and Peter's voice. Guotin was funny, snarky, a little easily frustrated but great at picking himself back up. He felt like a person.)

But all that didn't help the growing knot of mounting dread in his belly as he flipped-

Oh yeah.

The bottom-most panel of the left page had a distant silhouette, framed between Blindspot's boot and Monkey's paw. Black and white and [standing like an asshole](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/marveldatabase/images/e/e9/Muse_%28Earth-616%29_from_Daredevil_Vol_5_11_001.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20160910221816).

Sam's breath caught.

_He can do this_.

The right page had-

A vision from his nightmares, black and white and red all over (they'd made the lines down his face black instead of red, but that head-tilt was just the same), the wide shoulders, the stupid suspenders, the-

Sam choked.

Do-

_Do clowns bleed these days????_

He burst out laughing.

Monkey's text cut into Muse's dramatic entrance, breaking up his form into bits of black and red between Monkey sassing him. Between Guotin-Blindspot responding that Muse was more of a "bargain-bin mime". Most of the man's lower body was obscured by a bright splash of yellow and brown and red, Monkey's head and shoulders.

Sam turned the page.

Muse's dramatic entrance _speech_ was similarly mangled, with Monkey talking over him and Blindspot snarking back (there was tension in Blindspot's frame; a small panel of just his fist clenching at his side. But still the easy banter flowed, patchworking the very serious situation into something absurd). Monkey began to claim more and more panel space, breaking Muse into just an ink-dripping eye here, a clawing hand there - at one point Monkey and Blindspot began literally shoving at each other to try and reclaim panel space.

Sam couldn't _breathe_.

His breath caught again when Muse snapped and charged - but even though Blindspot on the page froze, too, Monkey was another story.

He tripped Muse and went back to arguing with Blindspot.

The banter loosened Blindspot as much as it did Sam. His arms relaxed at his sides, his limbs began to move freely again. There was a close call here and there, Blindspot nearly taking a hit before re-engaging camouflage, Muse pulling out a (fake; there was even a tag pointing at it with the word) grenade, which Monkey transformed into a wax peach.

Between Blindspot's invisibility and Monkey's endless bag of tricks, the next nine pages were _not_ a knock-down, drag-out fight.

They were an exercise in humiliating Muse.

By the end Muse was bruised, emitting dizzy stars and tweeting birds like a fuckin' Looney Tunes episode, and being shoved unceremoniously into a garbage can that Monkey then froze over til he couldn't get out, and Sam's sides hurt.

"Sam?" Foggy knocked at the door. "You okay in there, kiddo?"

Unable to breathe to speak, Sam flailed at the doorknob until it opened, all but fell into Foggy's arms, and held up the comic.

Foggy _oof_ -ed and caught him. "What-" He looked at the comic page, and started to chuckle. He rubbed circles into Sam's back. "Good?"

Sam beamed at him.

_"Great."_

**Author's Note:**

> re-reading Drag and Rasp and got this into my head! It's fast and rough but it occurred to me that hey, if they _did_ have Muse show up, wouldn't Monkey's entire deal be ideal for, well,
> 
> Making a monkey out of him?
> 
> I know this isn't perfect but I thought it might be a good route to take when addressing PTSD, esp with outside input from people who only sort of understand the situation - taking someone who, apparently, takes himself v seriously and looms large in Sam's head and then breaking down and undercutting the drama. Making him something to laugh at without completely defanging him. Idk, I tried.
> 
> (also i read muse's wiki entry to write this and GOD what a creepy asshole. standing like lucky luciano. evil bloody mime. gross. Sam deserves the chance to laugh at him.)
> 
> I hope you liked it!


End file.
